 |
|
Estimate Soil Texture-by-Feel
October 16, 2008The ability to estimate soil texture-by-feel is an important skill that students and registered soil scientists should learn.
Many soil properties depend largely on soil texture, and texture impacts most land-use decisions. Soil texture strongly influences the nutrient holding ability of a soil, the amount of water the soil can store, the amount of this water that is available to plants, how fast water moves through the soil, the effectiveness of soil in cleaning up waste water, the shrink-swell nature of soil, and many other properties.
D.P. Franzmeier and P.R. Owens, Purdue University, write about how soil texture can be determined by using the texture-by-feel method in an article published in the 2008 Journal of Natural Resources and Life Sciences Education.
"Soil texture can be determined in the field using the texture-by-feel method or the samples may be sent to a laboratory for particle-size analysis. The laboratory option is more accurate, but it is more expensive and slower because it can take weeks or months to get the results," explains Owens.
The field method is less accurate but much faster. Soil scientists use texture-by-feel to provide quick reliable estimates of soil texture in the field. This method is used by researchers where numerous samples are required to capture variability, developing soil surveys, and consultants for sizing on-site wastewater disposal systems.
When the texture-by-feel method is used, the estimator takes a soil sample about the size of a marble up to the size of a golf ball. The person estimates the texture by rolling, squeezing, flattening, and pressing the soil between his fingers. Each person develops his own technique for estimating texture. The important point is that while learning the technique, he must always compare his results with laboratory data.
A computer program assesses student performance for estimating particle-size distribution and soil texture. If the estimate coincides exactly with laboratory results, the score is 100%. If the estimate and laboratory results are as far apart as possible, at opposite corners of the texture triangle, the score is zero.
"Students appreciate the fairness of grading. Also, we can use the method to let a student or professional know if their estimates are consistently above or below the laboratory values, which helps them calibrate their fingers," says Owens.
"We have used this tool to help registered soil scientists improve their field skills and they seem to enjoy the challenge," says Franzmeier.
The program is available on the IRSS website: http://www.isco.purdue.edu/irss/. Select Resources, then Texture Estimate Calculator.
Soil Science Society of America (SSSA)
"Soil texture can be determined in the field using the texture-by-feel method or the samples may be sent to a laboratory for particle-size analysis. The laboratory option is more accurate, but it is more expensive and slower because it can take weeks or months to get the results," explains Owens.
The field method is less accurate but much faster. Soil scientists use texture-by-feel to provide quick reliable estimates of soil texture in the field. This method is used by researchers where numerous samples are required to capture variability, developing soil surveys, and consultants for sizing on-site wastewater disposal systems.
When the texture-by-feel method is used, the estimator takes a soil sample about the size of a marble up to the size of a golf ball. The person estimates the texture by rolling, squeezing, flattening, and pressing the soil between his fingers. Each person develops his own technique for estimating texture. The important point is that while learning the technique, he must always compare his results with laboratory data.
A computer program assesses student performance for estimating particle-size distribution and soil texture. If the estimate coincides exactly with laboratory results, the score is 100%. If the estimate and laboratory results are as far apart as possible, at opposite corners of the texture triangle, the score is zero.
"Students appreciate the fairness of grading. Also, we can use the method to let a student or professional know if their estimates are consistently above or below the laboratory values, which helps them calibrate their fingers," says Owens.
"We have used this tool to help registered soil scientists improve their field skills and they seem to enjoy the challenge," says Franzmeier.
The program is available on the IRSS website: http://www.isco.purdue.edu/irss/. Select Resources, then Texture Estimate Calculator.
Soil Science Society of America (SSSA)
Before selling carbon credits, read this
Storing carbon in agricultural soils presents an immediate option to reduce atmospheric carbon dioxide and slow global warming.
Physical fertility of typical Mekong delta soils (Vietnam) and land suitability assessment foralternative crops with rice cultivation
Most of the soils in the Mekong delta, Vietnam are formed and developed during the Holocene period. The first Viet people came to reclaim and exploit this plain at the beginning of the 17th century. As a result, in the middle of the 19th century, the Mekong delta had become the largest region of agricultural production, essentially rice produce for marketing purposes. Around 1980 three rice crops in a year were applied. That system continued to increase with time within the recent past 10 years. This land use system has mainly enlarged on the areas along Hau and Tien river. Nowadays, in the Mekong delta, rice yield and production in the developing and well developed alluvial soil groups tend
More Soil Texture Current Events and Soil Texture News Articles
![Soil texture and nitrogen mineralization potential across a riparian toposequence in a semi-arid savanna [An article from: Soil Biology and Biochemistry]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51FQM3CAMYL._SL160_.jpg) |
Soil texture and nitrogen mineralization potential across a riparian toposequence in a semi-arid savanna [An article from: Soil Biology and Biochemistry] by J. Scott Bechtold (Author), R.J. Naiman (Author) This digital document is a journal article from Soil Biology and Biochemistry, published by Elsevier in 2006. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Media Library immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser. Description: Soil texture is an important influence on nutrient cycling in upland soils, with documented relationships between mineral particle size distribution and organic matter retention, nitrogen (N) mineralization, microbial biomass and other soil properties. However, little is known of the role of mineral particle size in riparian soils, where fluvial sorting creates strong spatial contrasts in the size distribution of sediments in sedimentary landforms. We studied total organic carbon (TOC) and total N (TN)... |
|
SciEd Classroom Soil Studies; Class Study-soil Texture Kit by LaMotte Company Soil texture kit; Lamotte; Classroom; Reinforce key concepts introduced in lecture materials; Soil samples for all units; Grades 5—8; Class size: 25 experiments | |
 |
Soil Oforia (Primary Contributor) |
 |
Dickies Chef Custom Executive Chef Coat, Black Texture, 46 by Dickies 65% Polyester/35% Cotton Micro Stretch Twill, 6.5 oz., Crisp Hand, Soil Release and Wrinkle Resistant Finishes, Sleeve Pocket, Underarm Eyelets, Dickies Logo Check Buttons on all Solid Trim Coats, Black Logo Buttons on Some of Print Trim Coats, Machine Washable. White Body on All Versions. |
|
Effect of Fertility Level, Soil Texture and Irrigation Interval on Cotton Yields by Texas Ag. Experiment Station (Publisher) | |
|
Use of soil texture analysis to predict subsurface fracturing in glacial tills and other unconsolidated materials (1).: An article from: The Ohio Journal of Science by Eun Kyoung Kim (Author), Ann D. Christy (Author) This digital document is an article from The Ohio Journal of Science, published by Thomson Gale on April 1, 2006. The length of the article is 3261 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser. Citation Details Title: Use of soil texture analysis to predict subsurface fracturing in glacial tills and other unconsolidated materials (1). Author: Eun Kyoung Kim Publication: The Ohio Journal of Science (Magazine/Journal) Date: April 1, 2006 Publisher: Thomson Gale Volume: 106 Issue: 2 Page: 22(5) Distributed by Thomson... | |
|
|
A quantification of short-term macroaggregate dynamics: influences of wheat residue input and texture [An article from: Soil Biology and Biochemistry] by S. De Gryze (Author), J. Six (Author), C. Brits (Author), R. Merckx (Author) This digital document is a journal article from Soil Biology and Biochemistry, published by Elsevier in 2005. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Media Library immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser. Description: Soil structure and soil aggregation play an important role in an array of processes such as soil erodibility, organic matter protection and soil fertility. Modeling attempts of these processes would benefit substantially from including soil structural parameters such as soil aggregation. However, quantitative data on soil structural dynamics is lacking. Therefore, we conducted short-term (3 weeks) incubations to acquire necessary soil structural parameters for modeling purposes. Prior to incubation, all... |
![Moisture and soil texture effects on soil CO"2 efflux components in southeastern mixed pine forests [An article from: Forest Ecology and Management]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51J0NT7CW9L._SL160_.jpg) |
Moisture and soil texture effects on soil CO"2 efflux components in southeastern mixed pine forests [An article from: Forest Ecology and Management] by J.J. Dilustro (Author), B. Collins (Author), L. Duncan (Author), C. Crawford (Author) This digital document is a journal article from Forest Ecology and Management, published by Elsevier in 2005. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Media Library immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser. Description: Monitoring soil CO"2 efflux rates and identifying controlling factors, such as forest composition or soil texture, can help guide forest management and will likely gain relevance as atmospheric CO"2 continues to increase. We examined soil CO"2 efflux and potential controlling factors in managed mixed pine forests in southwestern Georgia. Soil CO"2 efflux was monitored periodically in two stands that differed in soil texture in 2001 and 2002, and in six additional stands in 2003. We also monitored... |
|
Root uptake of ^1^3^7Cs by natural and semi-natural grasses as a function of texture and moisture of soils [An article from: Journal of Environmental Radioactivity] by N. Grytsyuk (Author), G. Arapis (Author), V. Davydchuk (Author) This digital document is a journal article from Journal of Environmental Radioactivity, published by Elsevier in . The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Media Library immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser. Description: This work studies the dependence of ^1^3^7Cs root uptake on the structure of landscape, especially on texture and moisture of soils, under natural conditions, on abandoned radiopolluted lands in Northern Ukraine. Researches were carried out on a wide range of landscape conditions, at various levels of ^1^3^7Cs contamination (from 20 up to 5000kBqm^-^2), with different types of soils (approx. 20 soil varieties), which differ in texture, granulometric composition, degrees of gleyization and water... | |
|
SciEd Soil Texture Unit; Refill by LaMotte Company Reagent Refill; Lamotte; For Soil textured unit |
| © 2009 BrightSurf.com |